CTCAN has been busy keeping up with the shenanigans of Dominion Nuclear Connecticut and their 2 operating Millstone reactors. Units 2 & 3 are on the brink of relicensing approval much to the dismay of a hard working Coalition Against Millstone, of which CT CAN is a member. The NRC held its final public meeting to
take comment on the Environmental Impact Statement in January. Both afternoon and evening sessions were well attended by informed citizens opposed to relicensing including an assemblyman from Long Island. The Coalition submitted a lengthy critique of the report which was flawed with inaccuracies in typical NRC fashion.

The NRC also held a meeting March 24 to report on Dominion’s annual assessment. Of course the fire that occurred at the facility in January was not included and Dominion came out smelling like a rose. The coalition cited many violations incurred over the year, as well as the continuing facts of tritium,  trontium and cesium entering our environment during the inspection period.

The coalition also found a mother stricken with grief over the deformities her child was born with after she swam in the radioactive mix in Niantic Bay, where Millstone discharges. Speaking of discharge, Millstone has operated on an emergency discharge permit since 1995! CT CAN is questioning the CT DEP to move forward with the permit process and conduct required public hearings. CAN will keep members informed of these hearings, probably late summer.

The Coalition will hold a Close the Beach Rally on Thursday, May 26, 2005 at the Niantic Hole in the Wall beach where Millstone discharges. We would love to see more activists at this event.

CTCAN is also working on the waste issue. Dominion has loaded two casks for dry storage in their new system, which the Coalition has appealed in court. The case is currently at a standstill and the appeal will probably be dropped as there is no attorney to continue the case. Local officials and reporters have failed to adopt the notion of Hardened storage, which this citizen finds abominable. CT CAN will continue to lobby for HOSS and push for the NRC to release the National Academy of Sciences report on the vulnerabilities of the spent fuel pools.
- Geri Winslow, CTCAN, Waterford, CT.